City Council members make decisions on behalf of the people of Sebastopol. These decisions should be informed by community input. Unfortunately, many people feel they are either not being heard or not being taken seriously in the decision-making process. The perception is that Council members dictate to, rather than receive ideas from, the community.
We must do better. Here are four easy, common sense ways to do it:
1. OPEN HOUSE MEETINGS
As a Council member I will hold “Open House” meetings twice every month at which community members can meet with me individually or with their group to discuss their concerns and express their opinions on Council matters. These Open House meetings would be announced regularly and would take place at a convenient public location such as the Library or City Hall conference room. I want to know how the community feels. Holding these Open House meetings will keep me informed. We could do one evening session and one daytime session, to give maximum opportunity for all to participate.
2. FIFTH TUESDAY ROUND TABLE
In addition to making myself personally available at Open House meetings, I would establish a “Fifth Tuesday Round Table” series at which community members would have an opportunity to address one or two Council members at greater length and in a more interactive way than is possible in formal City Council meetings. There are four months in 2009 in which a fifth Tuesday comes up on the calendar. These fifth Tuesday meetings would be held at the City Hall conference room or other public facility. The Round Table would be informal, with no minutes recorded and no official business conducted. The purpose would be to allow participants to inform the Council of their concerns and at the same time get information from the Council. Items requiring formal consideration by the full Council could be identified and submitted for placement on a future agenda.
3. REAL TIME RESPONSE TO PUBLIC COMMENTS
Council members tend to sit silently and not respond to comments or questions from the public. The Council’s procedural rules do not require a response to public comments on items that are not on the agenda. Similarly, during the public hearing portion of items that are on the agenda, Council members are not required to respond directly to the public. Sometimes the lack of a response may be appropriate, but not always. Too often a citizen’s sincere effort to bring a question or concern to the Council ends with frustration over the non-response. While it is not realistic to expect instant solutions to complex problems, it does make sense for the Council to respond as fully as possible to public comments at the time the comments are made. Real time responses make for better interaction and mutual understanding between the Council and the community. People need to know what the Council is thinking. I will work to improve the Council’s policy and procedure for responding to community input.
4. ON-LINE COMMUNITY CONNECTION
I will establish an “opt-in” email list for those wishing to hear from me regularly, and who would like to have a two-way on-line dialogue with me concerning community issues.
GRASS ROOTS REPRESENTATIVE DEMOCRACY
The whole point to Open House Meetings, Fifth Tuesday Roundtables, Real Time Response to Public Comments, and On-Line Community Connection is to promote more responsive representation of the community by the Council. In a representative democracy, the interests of the people are placed in the hands of a few elected representatives. In a small town like Sebastopol, representative democracy can work, and should work, at a grass roots level. There is no reason we cannot include – and respect – all viewpoints and have full expression of opinion in the workings of our local government. We will restore confidence in the Council, and help bring our town together, by having greater input from the community.
WHAT THE PEOPLE SAY MATTERS TO ME
Community input doesn’t mean much if it is ignored. In seeking election to the Sebastopol City Council, I do not have a personal or political agenda that I seek to impose on the community. I am not beholden to a party nor do I adhere to a grand philosophy or worry about political correctness. I want to do what is right for Sebastopol, as desired by the people of Sebastopol. As a Council member I will be guided by the participatory input by local citizens, not by outside ideology or formulaic templates. What the people say to their elected representatives should matter. It matters to me. I pledge to base my decisions on the input I receive from the community.